


On the Stupidity of Humans

by AliceWasNotDreaming



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff and Angst, Getting Back Together, Idiots in Love, M/M, Misunderstandings, Mutual Pining, Post-Break Up, Wingman Phasma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-09 11:49:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17406362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AliceWasNotDreaming/pseuds/AliceWasNotDreaming
Summary: 'They want me to be a businessman,' Ben said, making a face. 'Do I look like I would make a good businessman?''Yes,' Hux said. 'Because you'd make a good anything if you put your heart to it.'***Six years ago Hux and Ben broke up. Six years later Ben is successful and Hux finds he still can't let go.





	On the Stupidity of Humans

'Mr Hux,' Phasma said briskly after the end of the meeting, when the officers, administrators and managers were filing out of the room, 'please remember that you have a meeting with the CEO of REN at three this afternoon.'

How could Hux forget? A meeting with Kylo Ren, the CEO of REN Fashion Company - it was practically the highlight of his week. REN was the largest fashion brand in the world, with branches in nearly every city of every country of every continent. It was a gross understatement to say Hux was excited about a potential deal with it.

Hux, as the CEO of the biggest online shopping company FirstOrder, was already collaborating with thousands of brands, from electronics to high-end fashion, but a deal with REN would be an unprecedented success.

'I remember, Ms Phasma,' Hux replied, trying hard to suppress the excitement in his voice. Judging from the unimpressed look she threw him, he was not as successful as he hoped to be.

She waited until the last person left the meeting room before saying to him drily, 'Are you sure you don't need a brandy, Hux? You're practically jumping with nerves.'

'Nonsense,' Hux retorted immediately. 'I'm not nervous.'

'Okay,' she said, rolling her eyes. 'I'll bring you an espresso.'

***

At two, Hux was already seated in the backseat of his Mercedes on his way to the headquarters of REN. It was only half an hour's drive from Hux's own office, but he had always insisted on being at least 15 minutes early to every meeting.

It was barely half past two when Hux arrived. Hux could only get a brief glimpse of the glass building, imposing and elegant at the same time, before he was ushered inside by a dark-haired young woman who introduced herself as Kylo Ren's secretary, Rey Skywalker.    
   
The name sounded familiar to him, but he had no time to dwell on it. He was too preoccupied with his other thoughts. He had to admit that he highly anticipated not only striking a deal, but also meeting the renowned CEO. Kylo Ren was as mysterious as he was acclaimed, and though countless magazines had invited him for an interview he had refused them all with no exception. He had never even shown his face in public. All important public meetings were attended by the vice presidents.

Hux had longed to meet Kylo Ren for years. He admitted that he was curious about him, as one successful businessman would be to another. Hux had always appreciated a good brain, and this Kylo, who had founded REN and raised it to success using his own two hands within five short years, was clearly nothing short of a genius.

He quickened his pace as they approached Kylo Ren's office on the top floor. Rey the secretary, who looked little more than a teenager, smiled at him with amusement. 'Mr Ren has been looking forward to cooperating with you for a long time, too,' she said politely. Hux exchanged a few pleasantries with her, but he wasn't really paying attention.

'Here we are,' Rey said, pausing in front of a set of wooden double doors at the end of a long corridor. She knocked twice before pushing it open for Hux to enter. Hux gave her a nod of thanks; she smiled back. He heard the soft click of the door closing behind him as he took in the airy room.

It was well-lit, given the floor-to-ceiling windows on two sides of the room. It was large and tidy, with a white pentagonal desk in the centre. The design was light, graceful, professional and comfortable, and exactly what Hux approved of. Everything was more than satisfactory.

He had almost decided that this meeting would be a success when he saw Kylo Ren himself, who was standing up with a greeting on his lips. Their eyes met, brown on green, and they both froze.

There was a long pause. Hux could hear the blood roaring in his ears as he stood stock still, thunderstruck.

'...Ben?!' he hissed.

***

That name seemed to bring the man back to himself. He shook himself out of his stupor. 'Kylo Ren, if you please,' he said, his voice deep, low and slightly hoarse. Just as Hux remembered it. The dark-haired man turned away from him, clearing his throat awkwardly.

'Would you like a drink?' he asked after a short embarrassed pause, gesturing at the bottle of wine and two glasses on the desk.

'Thank you,' Hux answered stonily.

They both sat down, none of them willing to look the other fully in the face. Ben - no, Kylo Ren - poured them both a glass of wine, and pushed Hux's to him wordlessly.

Hux found that he was wordless. He wracked his brain for something to say, but came up empty-handed. That was to be expected, though, wasn't it, he thought humourlessly. After all, what could anyone say after discovering the CEO you were supposed to make a professional deal with was your ex-boyfriend, who you haven't met for six years?

'You haven't changed much,' Ben - Kylo - said, in a feeble attempt at conversation.

'You have,' Hux said shortly, taking in the dark suit and tie Kylo was wearing. Ben Solo would never have put that on even at gunpoint, but Kylo Ren wore it with ease, like it was a second skin. The wild, disheveled hair had disappeared, with the help of hair gel, Hux suspected, which Ben Solo would never have touched.   

Kylo shifted. 'Yes, I have,' he said in a different voice, as if that short sentence had given him new strength. 'I _have_ changed,' he repeated more strongly.

Hux ignored him. 'So are we going to talk about a collaboration now, Mr Ren?' he asked, letting just a hint of sarcasm into his voice.

'I think we're neither of us in the right mood for that,' Kylo said, sounding reasonably calm. 'I suggest we reschedule the meeting.'

'How unprofessional of you, Mr Ren. I for myself can't say the same,' Hux said coldly, ignoring his still pounding heart. 'But if you insist on rescheduling then of course, why not.'

Kylo's nostrils flared slightly. Hux noted with secret relief that he was still easily irritated - at least one thing had not changed. Hux had always been able to rile him up effortlessly.

'It is unwise to discuss serious matters when you're not yourself, Mr Hux, I thought you knew that much,' Kylo said icily. 'And judging by the way you're gorging yourself on wine, you won't be in full control of your faculties for long, even if you are now.'

Hux scowled. He had forgotten that Ben Solo had been able to rile _him_ up, too. And had he been drinking that much? He glanced at the wine bottle, now more than half empty, and realized that he had been helping himself to glass after glass unconsciously. He put his glass down with a small thud.

'Very well,' he said ungraciously, already feeling a slight pounding in his head. 'We will contact you later to discuss it.' He stood abruptly, thanking God he did not wobble. He saw Kylo rise too. 'Oh, don't bother with polite pretensions. Aren't we past that long ago,' he said rudely. 'Just sit down. Goodbye.'

'Have a nice day,' he heard Kylo say frostily as he turned to stroll out of the room. He didn't answer.

***

'And then he just said "have a nice day", bold as you please!' Hux raged, feeling the urge to hurl something at the wall. 'How dare he! The cheek!'

Phasma, who was seated on his sofa with Millicent the cat in her lap, said calmly, 'So are you gonna meet with him again?'

'Yes! No!' Hux shouted. 'I'll send someone to negotiate with him. But I'll be damned if I have to take one more look at his smug, dumb, hideous, successful face!'

Phasma waited until Hux collapsed back onto the sofa, exhausted, before saying drily, 'Nice rant. Though it wasn't necessary. If you don't wanna meet him then don't. But I warn you - it's not very polite to send a subordinate to deal with a CEO. I doubt he'd appreciate the gesture. You may not get the deal.'

She was right, of course. They didn't get the deal. But Hux was too angry to care. Angry at himself for losing his control and composure, angry at Kylo for being so - _unapologetic_ , after all that had happened.

It had been six years ago. He and Ben had been friends since college, and had gotten together a few years later. They were in a stable relationship until that one day before Christmas, when Hux saw Ben kissing a woman at a bar near his work place. When Ben came home to their flat Hux had stared at him icily, betrayed and hurt and furious, and Ben had the gall to just look at him with confusion, brown eyes wide, and ask him what was wrong. All hell had broken loose after that, and they hadn't met ever since. Ben tried calling and texting Hux, but he ignored them all, and eventually Ben had stopped trying. Hux couldn't tell if he was more furious or relieved at that.

***

A company that FirstOrder was collaborating with was throwing a Christmas party. Phasma and Hux had agreed that they, as vice president and CEO, had to attend. After confirming that they would be present Hux had discovered that Ben - Kylo - was invited too. Of course he was. 

It took Hux all of five seconds to spot the tall man in the crowd of party guests. Hux had to grit his teeth to suppress his urge to hide behind Phasma, who was only slightly shorter than Hux himself.

'Where is your courage, Hux?' Phasma said unsympathetically, nodding and smiling to other guests as they strolled along. 'You remember you're the CEO of the largest online shopping company?'

Hux grunted. 'Yes. And I remember my traitorous ex is here, too,' he snarled, watching as the tall figure of Kylo making his way across the room.

'Hux,' Phasma said sternly, 'while I understand your heartbreak, you really have to get yourself together.'

'Heartbreak?' Hux spluttered. 'I am not heartbroken! I just hate his guts -'

'You hate his guts because he broke your heart,' Phasma said flatly. 'I saw you. You were sick with grief the first few weeks, barely eating, crying into your pillow every other night. And then you threw yourself into work, trying to numb yourself. I let you, thinking you would get better. But it's obvious now that you are not better.' They had reached a secluded corner. She rounded on him, blue eyes sharp. 'Tell me honestly - have you two ever talked about the kissing incident?'

'Of course not!' Hux said indignantly. 'There was no need to humiliate the both of us!'

'That is why I say you're idiots,' Phasma said fiercely. 'You ought to have talked about it. How the hell did you manage to break up with him without mentioning it?'

'I told him he was unworthy of me and a waste of time,' Hux said coldly, watching as Kylo greeted a woman in a red dress with a pleasant smile. 'I think we could both understand what I was talking about.'

'Maybe you both understood,' Phasma replied, 'but you're running away from the problem, nonetheless. You're avoiding it. And that's why you still can't let go.' 

Hux felt anger flare in his chest. It made him furious to think that even after six years his ex-boyfriend could affect him so much, that he still had a weakness named Ben Solo. He didn't want it to be true, but he couldn't bring himself to deny Phasma's wisdom. Was he running? Was he afraid? No, that was an unbearable thought. He would never be afraid of facing Ben.

'Prove it, then!' Phasma said. Hux realized he had said the last part out loud.

There was a rush of something like impulsiveness in Hux. It was a mixture of fury at Ben for betraying his trust, resentment at himself that he had been such a stupid coward, and determination and pride that this nonsense would end right there, right now. 

He turned and made his way towards his ex-boyfriend.

***

Ben looked resplendent in his black suit and blue tie. Hux had almost forgotten how breathtaking the sight of him could be.

The taller man's eyes widened in shock when he saw Hux. It was evident he didn't know Hux would be present. He opened his mouth to say something, but Hux ignored him. 'Care to dance?' he said bluntly before the adrenaline died down.

Ben put his hand on Hux's offered arm wordlessly, letting him lead them onto the dance floor.

'How have you been these six years?' Hux began, feigning nonchalance.  

Ben bit his lip. Hux remembered he used to chide Ben about doing this, saying it made his lips chapped and bloody. A stab of pain went through his heart; he turned away from the familiar sight.

'Complicated,' Ben replied, an unfathomable expression on his face. 'What do people usually feel when their ex dumps them for no reason at all, shouting that they're a useless pile of garbage?'

Hux felt his rage surge. For no reason! It made him furious, that Ben could still pretend he was an innocent victim after doing what he did. Ben made him sound like the villain, the heartless monster who abandoned him. Had that been what he's been running around telling everyone about their breakup?

'So that is what you're running around telling everyone?' Hux hissed, voicing his thoughts. 'That you're a helpless princess abused and abandoned by the cruel wicked villain?' Ben looked at him, stricken. Hux ignored his hurt look. 'That is thick coming from you. I for myself haven't been announcing to the world that you're a traitorous, philandering, worthless excuse of a human being. That behind all that fame and success you hide a rotten heart!'

'That's enough, don't you think?' Ben said, stepping back. He was very white and shaking slightly. 'You've made yourself very clear six years ago. I don't need to hear it again to remember my crimes, though how your conscience allows you to pin them on me is beyond my meagre understanding.' With that he turned and pushed his way away from Hux, disappearing into the crowd.

***

Hux gritted his teeth as he raced on the road in his car. It had always exhilarated him, to be driving at high speed through the night. He supposed it gave him an illusion of escaping from his troubles.

He should have known that seeking Ben out would only end in misery and pain. What was the point? He saw Ben and the woman kissing with his own two eyes, proof enough that Ben was tired of him, tired of their relationship. So he had set Ben free. What was the point of talking that out? Did he expect Ben to give him a minute explanation of the reasons he didn't want to be with Hux anymore? Did he want a verbal confirmation that Ben wanted to break up?

He supposed that he had wanted an apology, at the very least. But come to think of it, what was the point of hearing Ben say sorry? That one word would change nothing.

Hux gritted his teeth harder and pretended he wasn't crying.

***

Hux made his way towards his front door. The street was dark, and the neighboring houses had no warm yellow lights shining from the windows. It was long past two in the morning, everyone was probably asleep in their beds by now.

It took Hux a few moments to realize there was someone curled up on his doorstep in the dim light. It took him a few more moments to realize it was Ben. They stared at each other silently. Hux noticed that Ben's face was wet. He'd been crying, he realized.

That broke his resolve. 'Ben? What are you doing here?' he hissed, stepping towards the man curled into a ball.

'Hux -' the word came out high-pitched and half a sob. Drunk, Hux realized with a sigh. 

'I thought you weren't coming back!' Ben continued to sob out, his voice rising in volume. He let out a small hiccup. 'I've been here for hours! How could you -'

'Hush!' Hux hissed, putting an arm around him to haul him up. 'You'll wake everyone. Be quiet.' Ben rose pliantly, leaning on Hux, tears still streaming down his face.

He was vividly reminded of that one other time Ben had waited for him on his doorstep late at night. He had forgotten to bring his key. He had quarrelled with his parents that day, and was practically shaking with anger by the time Hux arrived. 

After Hux calmed him down with cups of hot tea and lots of kisses, Ben explained. 'They want me to be a businessman,' he said, making a face. He glanced at himself moodily. 'Do I look like I would make a good businessman?'

'Yes,' Hux had said. Ben blinked.

'Because you'd make a good anything if you put your heart to it,' Hux said calmly.

Now they were in the same situation, but everything was different. Before, Hux had been Ben's boyfriend, the one person he trusted with his life. Now who was he to Ben? He closed his eyes briefly, suddenly feeling tired.

He deposited Ben on his sofa gently before locking the door and switching on the lights. When he turned around he saw that Ben was curled around Millicent the cat.

'Millie,' Ben hiccuped. 'I've missed you, you know? Do you miss me too? Or have you forgotten me like your master?' He buried his face in her soft fur. She meowed softly in response.

Hux felt his throat tighten. 'You can sleep here tonight,' he said, turning away.

'Why?' Ben asked.

'Because you're in no state the go home alone, and I'm not driving you at this hour,' Hux said.

'No. Why did you break up with me?' Ben said, his voice trembling.

The familiar anger was back again. 'Why?' Hux hissed venomously, rounding on him. 'Why? How dare you? Or are you so stupid that you haven't figured it out yet? Alright, I'll make it plain. I saw you, and whoever you were seeing behind my back. I saw you two make out in the bar. I recognized my cue to leave, so I left. What's so hard to understand about that?'

Ben stared at him with watery brown eyes. He looked confused. 'I wasn't seeing anyone behind your back.'

Hux rolled his eyes, blinking back traitorous tears. 'Yeah, right. Go to bed, Ben.' He turned towards his own room.

Ben stood up unsteadily but staggered towards him, determined. 'Why don't you trust me?' he insisted, pleading and hurt. 'I really wasn't -'

Hux didn't know what Ben really wasn't doing, because Ben vomited on the floor without finishing the sentence.

They stared at the puddle for a few seconds. Ben spoke first. 'Sorry. I - I'll clean it up.' He lurched towards the kitchen.

Hux caught his arm. 'Don't bother,' he sighed. 'Get in the shower. I'll bring you clothes.'

***

Ben was huddled on a corner of Hux's bed, fast asleep. Hux didn't have the heart to kick him back to the sofa.

He looked at his ex-boyfriend, resigned. He looked the same as he did six years ago, the same man that Hux knew and loved, the same man that shattered his heart.

He leant down to kiss Ben lightly on the forehead. The last time before goodbye, he thought.

***

When Hux woke up the next morning Ben was already up. He was seated at the foot of the bed, staring forlornly at his ruined suit.

'I did my best with it,' Hux said. Ben jumped, turning tiwards him. 'But you'll still need a new suit.'

'You're awake,' Ben said. 'I never thought I'd see you wake up beside me again.'

The sappy words only made Hux feel hollow. 'You don't have to pretend,' he sighed.

'I don't understand,' the stubborn fool said. 'I wasn't seeing anyone! I -' Ben stopped suddenly, realization dawning on his face.

'Oh, you remember now,' Hux said drily.

'It was an accident!' Ben said. He clutched Hux's arm. 'I told you I had to work late, remember? That was because my company back then was holding a stupid Christmas party at the bar. Some woman who didn't know I had a boyfriend tried to kiss me. I pushed her away and told her I was taken. That's all! I swear! Poe and Finn - my VPs - were there that night, you can ask them!' There was a desperate but hopeful edge to his voice.

Hux felt his brain was too slow, muddied and confused, unable to process the new information. 'So you weren't cheating on me?' he asked slowly.

'No! Of course not!' Ben said. His eyes were shining with unconcealed hope. 'I've always loved you only. Even after you broke up with me and called me garbage. I fought only because you told me I would make a good anything if I put my heart in it. So I thought if I were more successful instead of useless, worthless garbage you'd want me again.' Ben's words were coming out fast and blurred now. 'I really like you, Hux. Please.'

Hux's tongue felt too heavy. 'You didn't cheat on me,' he repeated stupidly.

'No,' Ben whispered.

Everyone who heard the burst of sobs coming out from Hux's window would have thought he had lost his entire fortune along with his whole family overnight. 

***

'So you _are_ the Hux that my cousin used to go on and on about!' Rey Skywalker exclaimed with a laugh as she led Hux inside the headquarters of REN. 'I was wondering if it was a coincidence! But it was really you.'

'Yes,' Hux said with a small smile. 'And you are the little cousin Ben used to go on and on about. No wonder your name sounded familiar to me.'

'So what do you think? Will you come to an agreement about the cooperation this time?' Rey laughed.

Hux smiled as they made their way towards the double doors of Ben's office once more. He remembered what had happened here last month, and he remembered what had happened later, too - the way Ben's eyes would crinkle at the corners when Hux came close, the softness of his lips against his own, the happy, carefree sound that was his laughter.

'Oh, I think we will,' Hux said.


End file.
